On Tue, Oct 26, 2004 at 12:56:47PM -0600, Boyd Lynn Gerber wrote:
On Tue, 26 Oct 2004, Richard wrote:
On Monday 25 October 2004 05:32 pm, Bruce Marshall wrote:
My first computer experience was with a IBM 650. The memory was on a rotating belt-driven drum. Sometimes with a power spike, the belt would snap..... :-)
Didja ever see what happens to a 6 foot drum with fixed heads when there is a sudden phase reversal? The drum, rotating at 3600 rpm, stops in a fraction of a rotation as it slams into the heads.
I doubt if many here have ever heard of, much less worked on a serial drum machine using ac logic. That was the first Process Control Computer, a RW/BR-300 invented around 1957 and still controlling the original process at the Texaco refinery when I left the company in 1973. You had to speak machine language on that one, assembly came later. ra
I have to admit that brings back old memories. The old optical tapes,
Hehe, I gave you a free vacation in memory lane lol. I'll have too wait 20 years before I can talk about the olden days of Pentium 4s and Nvidia cards too play Doom3, heh. From what I have read, a PDP machine was around 1 - 10 MHz. Some people wouldn't call that fast, but running UNIX, well, it wouldn't be too slow either. My Security + eacher tells me about his older days of computing too, where he would sit for days at his text based OS messing around. Like I do now heh.
punch cards and the PDP equipment. I worked with Sperry/Univac who became UNISYS. It was always fun play with the old equipment. I was surprised at how slow the US goverment was in moving forward. We had to support equipment for the late 1950's and eary 1960's. That was in 1970-1987.
I can't knock the 60s, they gave you Black Sabbath, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Janis Joplin, and UNIX. Not too mention cars had V8 engines standard. :)
OH... nestalgia... Maybe it dates a few of us...
But this is good for you, it lets you look back on your life and reflect on all you've done, and gotten through. Enjoy it man.
-- Boyd Gerber
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